Namibië: Nama vs Afrikaner vs Herero

In de jaren 40 van de 19de eeuw wisten Nama-leider Oaseb en Oorlam-leider Jonker Afrikaner vrede tussen beide volkeren te bereiken. Afrikaner kreeg de leiding over het land tussen Swakop River en Kuiseb River en werd opperheer van het Hererogebied ten noorden van Swakop River tot aan Waterberg Plateau. Met wapens wist hij hegemonie te behouden over de Herero en het gebied diende als buffer tussen de Herero in het noorden en de Nama in het zuiden. Na zijn dood in 1861 kwam het geregeld tot gewapende conflicten tussen de Nama en Afrikaner/Oorlam onderling en met de Herero. Footprint “Namibia” meldt daarover het volgende: Following the death of Jonker Afrikaner and the defeat of the Afrikaners and their allies at Otjonguere south of Windhoek in 1864, the years leading up to 1870 saw a virtual constant jockeying for position amongst the various Nama and Oorlam leaders. Once again the southern and central parts of Namibia were the scene of skirmishes and cattle raids. This infighting amongst the Oorlam/Namas effectively allowed the Herero under leadership of Maherero to break free of Afrikaner dominance. In 1870 Jan Jonker Afrikaner arrived at Okahandja with al large group of armed men with the intention of renewing the old alliance between Maherero and he Afrikaners. However, missionary Hahn intervened and when the treaty was concluded in September of that year the Afrikaners had lost their old rights over the Herero. Furthermore, Hahn had obtained permission for the Cape Basters to settle at Rehoboth. This settlement acted as an effective buffer between the Herero and the Oorlam/Nama. Peace was preserved between the Herero and Oorlam/Nama throughout the 1870s, and it was not until the beginning of the 1880s that fierce fighting broke out once more in central Namibia. Once again the disputes were over cattle and grazing rights and the involved all the key players in central Namibia at that time. All through 1880 and 1881 the fighting continued with a number of important leaders falling in battle, in particular Maherero’s eldest son Willem in the fight for Okahandja in December 1880. Up until 1884 and the rise of Hendrik Witbooi a bewildering series of shifting alliances, cattle raids and skirmishes characterized the scene in south and central Namibia. However, it was the arrival of German representatives in 1884, the subsequent treaties with the Herero and the effective subduing of Hendrik Witbooi 10 years later that fundamentally changed the way in which Namibia was governed. Power steadily shifted away from traditional leaders, such as Witbooi and Maherero, into the hands of the German colonial administrators. Furthermore, over the next 25 years vast tracts of Namaland and Hereroland passed into the hands of the colonial government and individual settlers. This fundamental change culminated with the 1904-1907 German-Namibian War which saw the final consolidation of colonial authority over the country, and the subjugation of the Namibian peoples by Europeans.